BJC: Muslim and African travel ban repeal is a ‘victory for faith freedom’
Tyler: Repeal is important, but it does not undo the damage the policy has done to religious freedom
Media Contact: Cherilyn Crowe / [email protected] / Cell: 202-670-5877
Today, on his first day in office, President Joe Biden issued an Executive Order to repeal the Trump administration’s Muslim and African travel ban.
Amanda Tyler, executive director of BJC (Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty), issued the following statement:
“Today’s repeal of the Muslim and African travel ban by President Joe Biden is a victory for faith freedom. Since the first week of the Trump administration, we’ve seen various versions of this policy rooted in anti-Muslim bias, targeting individuals based on their religious identity. The specifics and wording changed over the years, but no aesthetic adjustments could alter the religious discrimination inherent in the ban.
Religious freedom is threatened when our leaders use fear and othering to exclude entire groups of people from our country based on their religious identity.
Repealing the ban is an important step, but it does not undo the damage this policy has done to religious freedom. If we want to truly preserve faith freedom for all, we as Americans must loudly and clearly denounce religious bigotry in all its forms – now and in the future.”
BJC stands against attempts to target anyone for unfair treatment based on religion. The executive actions from the Trump administration that created the Muslim and African travel ban violated and endangered religious freedom by singling out one faith for disfavored treatment. Such actions use religious identity as a proxy for “security threat” and a reason for exclusion.
Visit BJConline.org/travelban for resources from BJC on the issue, including our first statement on January 27, 2017, and the brief in the Supreme Court case of Trump v. Hawaii. BJC also signed a letter today alongside 80 other organizations calling on Congress to prevent similar bans from being enacted in the future.
###
BJC (Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty) is an 85-year-old religiously based organization working to defend faith freedom for all and protect the institutional separation of church and state in the historic Baptist tradition.
